Private Screening Room At Tsa

[yoko]

I will be traveling with my cat in August. She is a really scared, nervous cat, once you put her in the carrier she started to meow, she could meow the whole trip to the vet.
I have read that you can request a special screening room at the airport, and some people say they might deny your request. Has anyone done it before? I will be flying at LAX. Thank you for all your help.

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

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Budget permitting, sometimes a private charter isn't much more than first class, if your trip is less than a thousand air miles (7 passenger aircraft normally run in the $2k/hour range), and all the hassles disappear.

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[margd]

I've read the same things you have and from what I gathered, the service may exist but be denied, depending on how busy and eventful things are at security. It would probably help to call LAX beforehand and ask if you can set this up in advance. If they had advance notice, perhaps you could arrange for a specific time to go through security.

I've only traveled by air with a cat once, but it was many years ago. I'm no longer current on what vets and airlines recommend/require when it comes to sedation while in flight but that's another thing you can check out. (Please forgive me if you're already got that covered!)

 

[yoko]

I've read the same things you have and from what I gathered, the service may exist but be denied, depending on how busy and eventful things are at security. It would probably help to call LAX beforehand and ask if you can set this up in advance. If they had advance notice, perhaps you could arrange for a specific time to go through security.

I've only traveled by air with a cat once, but it was many years ago. I'm no longer current on what vets and airlines recommend/require when it comes to sedation while in flight but that's another thing you can check out. (Please forgive me if you're already got that covered!) View attachment 185147

Thank you

 

[Ardina]

I've flown with my cat Saipha through major airports including San Francisco. I never asked to have a private screening room. Instead, I would put a harness on my cat before leaving home and carry the leash in a pocket. Then, just as I got to the front of the line at security, I would open the carrier just enough to stick my hand in and attach the leash. I'd pull her out (luckily she's good about being carried), holding tight onto the leash, walk through the metal detector, and wait on the other side for the carrier to come through. Saipha was usually happy to go hide in her carrier as soon as she could. Once we got onto the plane, I took off the harness so she could sleep more comfortably.

Having flown with her several times, here are a few tips I figured out:

1) Try not to have any other carry-on luggage with you. You'll have your hands full (literally!) with your cat and getting her through security. Even with no additional luggage to worry about, you may have to ask for some help from the people behind you in the security line to push the cat carrier onto the moving belt.
2) Trim claws before going to the airport in case something spooks your cat and she panics.
3) Spray some feliway into the carrier so she feels safe inside. Or use rescue remedy to keep her calm.
4) Cover the carrier with a blanket so all the people and noises aren't quite so scary.
5) Get her used to the harness beforehand.
6) Bring some garbage bags and wipes in case she has an accident in the carrier.
7) Have documentation of rabies vaccination on you. If it's an international flight, make sure to have documentation from the vet that she's healthy and cleared to fly.
8) Get a soft sided carrier - I normally prefer hard carriers, but with the soft ones, you can get a bigger carrier and squeeze it under the seat in front of you. It's also easier to carry through an airport since you can sling it across your body as opposed to giving your arms a workout with a hard carrier.

I wouldn't worry too much about the meowing. It's noisy enough at the airport and especially in the plane that no one will be bothered by the meowing. And eventually she'll fall asleep.

I wouldn't recommend sedation - it can make it harder for them to breathe, especially with the flat-faced cats. A lot of airlines won't let any sedated cats on board either.

Finally, I've heard that people ask for ice cubes on the flight so their cat has a water source, but my cat has never licked them or eaten anything on a flight, not even her favorite treats. But it's worth a try.